If you use an iPhone alongside your Mac, the two devices are almost always communicating with each other in one way or another. That's what makes Apple's ecosystem so seamless and unique.
But if you want to unlink your iPhone from your Mac, there are a number of different ways to do it. We'll go over them all below.
See also: iPhone/iPad: How to set a different text size in each app
1. How to Unlink an iPhone from Finder on Mac
If you want to stop your iPhone from showing up in the Finder on your Mac, simply unplugging it from the USB cable is enough. But if that doesn't work, you probably have the Finder set up to detect your iOS device over Wi-Fi.
To stop this, start by selecting your iPhone in the Finder sidebar. Then, scroll down to the Options section and uncheck the box next to Show this iPhone when on Wi-Fi.
If you don't own the Mac, you can choose to revoke the permissions you originally granted when you connected your iPhone to it. To do this, open your iPhone's Settings app and go to General > Reset. Follow that by tapping Reset Location and Privacy.
2. How to Disconnect a Mac from an iPhone Personal Hotspot
The iPhone's Personal Hotspot feature lets your Mac quickly access the internet without another Wi-Fi network. But if you want to disconnect from it, by clicking on your iPhone in your Mac's Wi-Fi menu or by choosing a different hotspot altogether, you'll need to do the following trick.
Additionally, you may want to stop your Mac from constantly asking you to connect to your iPhone. To do this, open the Apple menu and go to System Preferences > Network > Wi-Fi. Then uncheck the box next to Ask to join Personal Hotspots. You can still join it through the Wi-Fi menu.
You can also prevent devices (like Macs you don't own) from joining your iPhone's Personal Hotspot. On your iPhone, go to Settings > Personal Hotspot and turn off the switch next to Allow Others to Join.
See also: How to share iPhone health data with family and doctors
3. How to disconnect Bluetooth pairing between iPhone and Mac
If you have connected your iPhone to your Mac via Bluetooth, you can disconnect the two devices by opening your Mac's Control Center, expanding the Bluetooth control, and clicking on your iPhone.
If you want to permanently disconnect the Bluetooth pairing between these devices, open your Mac's Apple menu, choose System Preferences, and select Bluetooth. Follow that by clicking the X icon next to your iPhone. Then, select Remove.
Alternatively, you can remove your Mac from your iPhone's list of paired Bluetooth devices. To do this, go to Settings > Bluetooth and tap the information icon next to your Mac. Then tap Forget This Device.
4. How to disconnect AirDrop between iPhone and Mac
If you want to stop your iPhone from showing up as an AirDrop location on your Mac, you need to turn off AirDrop on your iOS device. To do this, open the iPhone Settings app, go to General > AirDrop, and select Receiving Off. However, this will stop your iPhone from receiving files via AirDrop from other devices.
Conversely, you can prevent your Mac from showing up in AirDrop on your iPhone. Simply open the Finder app, select AirDrop in the sidebar, and set Allow me to be Discovered by: to No One.
If one of the devices doesn't belong to you, setting AirDrop to Contacts Only on your iPhone or Mac and removing any contact information associated with the other device from the Contacts app will prevent it from appearing in AirDrop.
See also: How to see which apps you use the most on your iPhone
5. How to stop iCloud syncing between iPhone and Mac
If you want to stop your Mac from syncing features and data like photos, contacts, and calendar events with your iPhone and other Apple devices, open the Apple menu and go to System Preferences > Apple ID. Follow this by unchecking the boxes next to the services you don't want — Photos, Contacts, Calendar, etc.
Or you can stop your iPhone from syncing data with your Mac (and other devices signed in to your Apple ID). To do this, open the Settings app, go to Apple ID > iCloud, and turn off the switches next to the services you want to disable.
6. How to disconnect Handoff between iPhone and Mac
Handoff can be incredibly useful when you want to continue your activity from iPhone to Mac and vice versa. But those constant visual cues in the Dock can be distracting.
If you want to disable Handoff on your Mac, go to System Preferences > General and deselect Allow Handoff between this Mac and your iCloud devices.
However, keep in mind that disabling Handoff also disables Universal Clipboard between iPhone and Mac.
If you still want to use Handoff on your Mac, but just want to stop prompts from your iPhone, open the Settings app on your iOS device and go to General > AirPlay & Handoff. Follow that by turning off the switch next to Handoff.
7. How to stop receiving iPhone text messages on Mac
By default, your Mac receives text and iMessage replies intended for your connected iPhone. If you want to stop this, open the Messages app on your Mac, open Preferences, go to the iMessage tab, and uncheck the boxes next to phone numbers.
You can also disable any email addresses (like the one associated with your Apple ID).
Alternatively, you can prevent your Mac from sending and receiving text messages through your iPhone. Go to Settings > Messages > Text Message Forwarding and turn off the switch next to Mac.
8. How to disconnect incoming iPhone calls on Mac
To avoid this, open the FaceTime app and bring up the Preferences window. Then, go to the Settings tab and uncheck Calls From iPhone.
Or you can set your iPhone to not forward incoming calls to your Mac. Open the Settings app and tap Phone > Calls on Other Devices. Then turn off the switch next to your Mac.
9. How to remove an iPhone from Apple ID on Mac
Your iPhone and Mac are always connected, as long as they use the same Apple ID. If you want to completely disconnect both devices, you need to sign out of your Apple ID on at least one device.
You can find the option to do this in System Preferences > Apple ID on a Mac or in Settings > Apple ID on an iPhone.
If you don't have your iPhone with you right now, you can unlink it from your Apple ID using your Mac. In System Preferences > Apple ID, select your iOS device in the sidebar and choose Remove from account.
Similarly, you can remove a Mac using your iPhone by going to Settings > [Your Name]. Then, select the macOS device and tap Remove from Account.
You've disconnected from almost everything
The above tips should help you unlink your iPhone from Mac. If you ended up removing any device from Apple ID , you might want to follow up by setting it up with a completely new iCloud account.
Information source: makeuseof.com
